Special
by DarkenedSkye
Summary: A short, fluffy DLeon piece .


This is my first Petshop of Horrors fanfic ^.^ I've only read volume 3 of the manga, but I fell in love with it, and my muses begged that I write this fic. It's just a short piece with a bit of D/Leon fluff. I hope you all enjoy it! Oh, and I love reviews ^_~

Special 

"Hello, Count! Good to see you again. Ah, I see you you've brought your friend along again too."  Master Chu winked as he lead D and Leon towards the Count's usual booth. No matter how busy the restaurant was, the booth was always empty. The Count seemed to be such an honoured guest that his booth was permanently reserved.

"Thank you." D smiled and bowed, the epitome of politeness.

"The usual?" The Master enquired.

"For me, yes," was the Count's reply. Then, "But perhaps you could sort out something different for the Detective here?"

"Of course! No problem!" Leon found himself confronted by a menu that appeared to be at least an inch thick. He opened it and scanned down the first page, eying the contents dubiously. Some of them did have normal names, such as Chicken and Bean Sprouts.

"Say, is the 'Chicken and Bean Sprouts' actually exactly what it says it is?" he asked suspiciously.

"Ah, the beauty of that one is that it's actually a vegetarian dish, and the entire thing is made from bean sprouts, just some of them are chicken flavoured."

"Uh…I think I'll pass for today," Leon declined, although his stomach protested loudly. The Master's face fell slightly.

"I think Officer Orcot would be happier with one of the more traditional Chinese dishes," the Count suggested, his typical half smirk in place.

"Of course!" Master Chu hurried off to see to their orders and, within minutes, there was a steaming feast laid out before them. Other customers eyed them enviously, having had their orders put off whilst the kitchen worked to prepare the Count's meal.

To his surprise, Leon was provided with a very normal, but very delicious, Hot and Sour Pork meal.

The two ate in silence for a while, the Count taking delicate forkfuls of his small plate of vegetarian something-or-other, before moving on to his various desserts, whilst Leon gobbled down his as though it were about to run off his plate. Which he did actually consider quite possible. The silence wasn't awkward as some of the silences had been when they first met. Well, they had been awkward for Leon, but probably not for the Count who was always perfectly calm and composed. The point was, the silence between the two had now become the sort of comfortable, companionable silence found between friends. Leon was not sure when the change has occurred; but he did not find it a bad thing.

When his plate was as clean as he could get it without licking the china, Leon heaved a satisfied sigh and slumped back in his chair.

"That was delicious; I'm stuffed! Guess we won't be going back to your place for tea after this, eh, D?"

Master Chu, who had arrived to clear away their plates, let out a squawk at Leon's words. "Tea?! You are declining an invitation to have Tea with the Count?!"

Leon stared at the Master, who looked back at him incredulously. "Um…well…I wasn't exactly invited. I just go whenever. There'll be plenty of time another day."

The Master's expression was still incredulous. "Do you know how lucky you are to have that privilege? Only the most special of guests are invited to Tea with the Count! There are many people who would love to be in your position."

Preparing to leave with the dirty dishes, he turned to the Count. "Mind you, he is a looker, eh?! I hope you found the meal to your liking."

"Yes, very much so. Did you, Officer?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes, delicious!" Leon agreed vaguely, rather overwhelmed by what the Master had just said.

"Goodbye then Count, Officer." Master Chu bowed to them each on turn.

"Goodbye." D bowed in return then stood, and Leon followed suit.

"See ya!"

The two left the restaurant and, still deep in thought, Leon didn't realise that he had just been following the Count until they were stood outside the ornate double doors to his Chinatown pet shop.

"Well, it seems that you are staying for tea after all," the Count commented. He flashed Leon his half smile-smirk, and pushed open the doors.

The heady smell of incense assaulted his nostrils as Leon stepped into the warm, clingy shadows of the shop. He followed D into the back room, where he sat in his usual plush chair as the Count began to lay out the tea things on a large, solid table in the centre of the room.

Soon a large pot of tea was boiled, and the Count proceeded to pour it into two delicate china tea cups, one of which he handed to Leon. They drank their tea in silence, but all the while a tiny half smirk, half smile graced the Count's lips. Usually Leon would break the silence that occurred during their tea sessions with some random, pointless comment or question about the meal, or about D's pets. However, as it had been at the restaurant, he did not feel the urge to; the silence was not awkward. But it wasn't that comfortable either, and another reason he did not speak was that, every time he was about to say something, he would look up at the Count and finding him staring straight back at him with those odd coloured eyes of his.

Eventually they had both finished their tea, and the Count leaned over to lift his cup off the table. Leon cleared his throat. "Thanks. Um…the tea was good. As usual."

D just smiled and, after collecting his own cup, rose from his seat.

After a moments hesitation, Leon also stood up. D raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. Taking a deep breath, he quickly asked the question that had been plaguing him since their meal at the restaurant earlier that day.

"Hey, Count, is what the Master said true? About you only inviting the most special people to tea?"

"Indeed it is." D turned to take their tea the sink and, on impulse, Leon followed him. 

Standing behind the smaller man, he asked softly, "So, am I special?"

D halted in his washing, and was silent for a moment. Then he turned so that he was looking up into Leon's eyes, the taller man standing over him. "Yes, you are."


End file.
